After using ice to fill that entire part of the dungeon, Leon noticed that his coins increased several times. The crystal really recognized that as an attack, but the new golems died instantly, or so Leon thought. When he returned the corridor to its normal size, Leon saw in the middle of the ice, that several golems were still alive.
"Not for long."
The creatures tried to move, but they weren't able to. They survived by increase the flames on their bodies to the limits, and little by little, they were melting the ice, but Leon wouldn't wait for that. Using Water Manipulation, he created roles inside the ice connecting where he was to where the golems were… if worked one time, there was no real reason to change strategy. However, Leon decided to try something a little different.
"Let's see how you guys handle mud…"
Leon only saw the golems becoming fire, earth, and water, but what would happen if he combines two elements and make that touch the monsters' bodies? Leon noticed that something bad for them would occur when the creature became an earth golem.
"I see… the fire would dry the mud and trap the beast permanently inside a block of earth. So, its body can only support one element at a time."
The golem couldn't change its shape while it was an earth golem, so it only waited. However, since several others were still alive, Leon couldn't wait. Heating the mud, Leon locked the creature in that place; after that, he finished it with a Magma Spear. It could absorb earth and fire, but not both at the same time. Leon repeated that same process several times until he killed the last one and ran out of mana.
"I hate dungeons…"
Leon fell on his butt and let out a sigh. To someone who has his skills, there was no worse place to fight. But in the end, it was also a good experience. Leon wouldn't become a true survivor if he only fights in the conditions where he has the upper hand.
After recovering some mana, Leon melted the ice of the cave and picked the cores of those golems. Cores of ordinary golems had the same color of their bodies, but those of bosses glowed in several tones. Blue, yellow, green, and red…
"So, those add all basic elements to items? Maybe I should keep this…"
Since it was something that he obtained after killing several bosses that have never been defeated before, perhaps the item could strengthen the buyers too much… Although that also applied to the ice club, he had no use for that, and carrying around was too troublesome, which was not the case to those cores. Regardless, Leon left the dungeon, and without any ceremony, He, Ren, and the workers left the region since they already collected all the cores.
Usually, while traveling, Ren would be in a good mood. However, even though only one dungeon was left to be cleared, he was awfully quiet, and he was also trying not to convey any feelings in his face.
"Did something happen?" Leon asked.
"… His majesty sent a message." Ren said with a grim expression.
"What did he say?" Leon asked.
"He said that you are doing a good job," Ren answered. "However, the earth dragons' dungeon is way more dangerous than the others. That is why he gave the order to some soldiers to help you."
"Tokyo looked pretty fine despite being near such a dangerous dungeon," Leon said. "Care to explain why?"
"The most powerful soldiers live in Tokyo," Ren explained. "And they fight daily against the earth dragons to maintain the peace."
"So, the emperor made a trap for me, or the men who are going to help are the strongest in the country and intend to do something," Leon said. "Which is it?"
"I don't think the emperor would do something like at this point in time," Ren massaged his eyebrows. "You already proved yourself to be a powerful ally. Although the Emperor commands our country, he listens to the opinions of his advisors… my best guess is that a few advisors insisted on letting their subordinates help. The emperor also hunts in that dungeon whenever possible, so he knows how that place is difficult."
"Really? He looked like someone powerful…" Leon rubbed his chin. "But I never thought he would train in the most dangerous dungeon of the country."
"Soldiers tend to work harder when their commander also fights in the front line," Ren added.
"I can't deny that, morale is pretty important in times of war…" Leon said. "Anyway, if those guys think they can screw with me, let them try. I will make sure to give them a pleasant surprise when the time comes."
"So, you intent to accept their offer." Ren showed a complicated expression. "You can always lie and say that you work better alone or that your magic can damage your allies or something like that."
"Nah, then they will say that they will offer support from behind." Leon chuckled. "There is no point in avoiding certain things. Troublesome people are better to be dealt with early on, the fewer chances they have to cause problems, the better."
"So, if they try to kill you…" Ren hesitated.
"I will do the same," Leon added. "It doesn't matter if they hate me because of who I am or due to the death of the prince. If they try to kill me, I will pay back with interest as soon as possible. Besides, the emperor is testing me, right? What is the sentence of those who defy the Emperor?"
"In times of war like these…" Ren hesitated again. "The sentence is death."
"There you have it by dealing with them; I will spare Makoto of problems later." Leon declared.